“Lizard King” Mikolas Signs

The St. Louis Cardinals have signed free agent pitcher Miles Mikolas to a two-year contract. He has spent the last three years pitching for the Yomiuri Giants in the Japan League, going 31-13 in 62 starts.

After making his big league debut in 2012 with San Diego, the 29-year old Mikolas appeared in 37 combined games with the Padres and Texas Rangers over the next three seasons. He went a combined 4-6 with a 5.32 ERA (10 starts) in the majors.

Last season, the right-handed Mikolas struck out 187 hitters in 188.0 innings pitched for Yomiuri.

In August, he was named the Central League MVP of the Month, an award he also received in June of 2015, making him the first foreign-born pitcher in Yomiuri Giants franchise history to win the MVP of the Month award multiple times.

His win streak of 13-games between 2015-16 also made Mikolas the first foreign-born pitcher to accomplish the mark in the Central League.

The contract agreement with the Cardinals was first reported by Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

Nicknamed the “Lizard King”, Mikolas earned the title not for being a fan of the Jim Morrison and The Doors but rather his eating of a live lizard in the minor leagues…